A friend whom I had met in Seattle, Claire, and another new friend Gloria from Southern California, had planned a trip to The Hidden Woman in Reno for makeovers and several days out on the town. At our meeting in Seattle I had been invited to join them, and I gratefully accepted. Since both my friend and I are active on the Internet, often in the TransGender Forum chat room, and have both digital and conventional camera equipment, we both decided to bring our laptop computers, cameras, and my photo scanner so that we could document the occasion in almost real-time for our many cyber-friends.
In preparation for the trip, I checked with the same bus tour company that I had traveled with before. I found that, due to an Italian Festival on the same weekend, the rates at the hotel in the package were significantly higher. I decided to find a less expensive motel in the downtown area, using an Internet reservation service, and made my reservation online. I made a reservation on the early bus at 6:40 a.m., which would arrive in Reno at 11:00 a.m.
The day before the trip I treated myself to a manicure and pedicure at my neighborhood nail salon. My toenails were painted in a shade of red, while my fingernails received two coats of clear polish. Later I contacted my friend on the Internet, and confirmed our itineraries. I performed the ritual of shaving my legs, underarms, chest and face. found the dresses, shoes, and accessories that I would wear for the trip, and packed them. I also packed my camera equipment, scanner, and laptop computer in bags that I would carry on the bus.
Up until the last minute, I was deciding whether to travel en femme on the way up. In the end I decided to do it--making this the first trip that I have taken without bringing any male clothing with me! In my usual frantic fashion I assembled everything else that I needed for the trip, and selected my favorite aqua sweater to wear over a matching pair of pants and flat shoes. I put on my undergarments and clothes, and put on my makeup, jewelry, and wig. I then hastily assembled my luggage, put on a jacket, and hurried to the bus stop a few blocks away. With my usual good luck, I just made the connecting transit bus, and got off at the bus terminal as the bus to Reno was arriving. I placed my garment bag and one suitcase in the bus baggage bin, and brought the bags containing my computer and other equipment on board.
It was still dark. The waning moon was in the sky. It promised to be another beautiful day, both in the Bay Area and in Reno. I stowed my equipment bag in the overhead compartment, and brought out my laptop computer. I then put on my headphones and started playing a CD of the original cast of West Side Story using it. I also began typing this diary entry, and also a page from my Seattle Oddessey.
At that point, the bus had only thirteen passengers, and each was napping, reading newspapers, or also listening to music. The driver was the same man who had driven me to Reno on my earlier trip, but he gave no indication that he recognized me.
About a half hour after leaving, we were greeted by the rising sun and a clear sky. Our first stop was in Sacramento, at a motel north side of the city. The CD had just finished. I stowed my computer and headphones in the bag, and left it under my seat. I then went into the motel, and bought a cup of coffee and a chocolate brownie from vending machines there, and a can of diet Coke to drink later. I finished my snack on the bus, and fixed up my lipstick.
The bus continued to the next stop at a convenience store in Roseville. After picking up passengers at both stops, it was about half full. I then retrieved my laptop computer and headphones, and began playing Linda Ronstadt's Greatest Hits, Volume 1., and continued typing this entry. The bus ride continued under beautiful, clear skies with the waning moon still up. I was thinking of my friend, who would be in the air at this time, and my many other friends in Seattle and elsewhere. The battery in my laptop computer finally died near Truckee, so I put my computer back in its bag.
The bus arrived in Reno about 15 minutes early. As with the previous trip, the driver went into the casino, and the lady at the reception desk boarded the bus, explained the use of the $13 machine play card, and distributed them and the other coupons to us on board. I then retrieved my luggage, and carried it into the casino. I telephoned my friends to come and pick me up. I then sat a fifty-cent slot machine, inserted the card, and began playing. Unlike the old-fashioned shot machines with handles to pull and immediate payout in coins, this high-tech machine accumulated credits. I ended up winning a few minor payouts and one jackpot, and won about $22! I then pushed the button and heard the classical jackpot sound of quarters dropping into the tray in the machine. I retrieved them in one of the small plastic buckets, and exchanged them at the change booth.
Casinos delierately have no places to sit, other than at the machines or gaming tables. I wisely had decided to quit while I was ahead, and decided to wait outside at the small bench by the bus loading area for my friends to arrive. I had told them that I would be in the casino, and when they arrived they searched for me there, but finally one of them spotted me outside.
(to be continued)
This page last updated: October 26, 1998
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